Democrat Bill de Blasio was elected the new mayor of New York City, scoring an overwhelming victory over Republican Joe Lhota on Tuesday night. De Blasio secured 73 percent of the vote while Lhota mustered 24 percent, DNA Info reported.
De Blasio became the first elected Democratic mayor in 20 years after "running a campaign devoted to progressive values and promising to tacle what he called the 'growing inequality' in the city," news reports said.
De Blasio gave his victory speech standing alongside his his wife Chirlane McCray, and his kids Chiara and Dante.
"When we call on the the wealthiest among us to pay just a little bit more... we aren't threatening anyone's success. That's how we all rise together," De Blasio said, pledging to fight for more affordable housing and ensuring that hospitals stay open, news reports said.
De Blasio's appeal during the campaign became his incessant criticism of Mayor Michael Bloomberg's New York, deeming it a "tale of two cities," while also slamming the NYPD's stop-and-frisk tactic.
Despite offering his concession speech at 9:45 p.m, Lhota took exception to De Blasio's description of New York as "a tale of two cities."
"We are five boroughs, but we are one city, we are one people, and we want our city to move forward....not backward. And I do hope our mayor-elect understands this before it is too late," Lhota said.
"I'd rather have stop-and-frisk. It was definitely working. I've been stopped and frisked three times, but I was in the wrong place at the wrong time. The officers were professional. They were just doing their jobs. I never thought I was being profiled or targeted," voter Kevin Jackson said to DNA Info. Jackson said he still voted for De Blasio.
Chris Christie easily won re-election as New Jersey Governor, defeating Barbara Buono 61 percent to 38, Reuters reported.
"A dispirited America, angry with their dysfunctional government in Washington, looks to New Jersey to say, 'Is what I think is happening really happening? Are people really coming together?' Let me give the answer to everyone who is watching tonight. Under this government, our first job is to get the job done, and as long as I'm governor, that job will always, always be finished," Christie told his supporters on Tuesday night.
Christie, who is openly considering running for president, has said his success as a Republican in a primarily Democratic state "offers a template for broadening the GOP's appeal after the disastrous 2012 election cycle and the party's record-low approval ratings following the recent government shutdown," Christian Science Monitor reported. Christie will take over later this month as chairman of the Republican Governors Association, a position that will further raise his national profile, news reports said.
Terry McAuliffe, a long-time Bill and Hillary Clinton advocate, narrowly was elected Virginia's governor, largely with the support of the heavily populated Washington suburbs, Reuters reported.
